Are We Really Listening?

OK, it’s time for complete transparency… How often have you asked someone how they’re doing and prayed their response was limited to just one word? So maybe you didn’t come to a complete stop and get done on one knee, but I’m guessing you’ve definitely had a time or two where you asked that question...

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Helping Someone Connect with a Purpose Requires Competency

If we truly want to help our team members feel like they’re part of something that matters, developing solid relationships by connecting on common ground can provide a great foundation. This isn’t some theory I read in a book, it’s something I saw a few managers demonstrate and something I experienc...

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Being Part of Something that Matters

I can’t think of anyone I know who doesn’t want to be part of something that matters, something bigger than themselves. We can all think of folks who believe they’re owed something, and say they work harder just as soon as they’re paid what they deserve, but I’m willing to bet nearly all of them wou...

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Purpose Builds Great Teams, and Profitability!

After a lengthy conversation with a friend who produces high end marketing videos, and procrastinating much longer than I should have, I finally gave in and had some snippets cut from a few professionally produced videos of me and Cindy speaking and began posting them as “shorts” on the YouTube chan...

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Disconnected from Everyone Involved

Make no mistake, I’ve seen some incredibly eloquent verbiage used in defining companies’ missions, visions, and values. But I’ve rarely seen the people in an organization rally around all that eloquence in a way produces. Even when the results seem to match the mission and vision, it’s far more like...

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Everyone Expects More but Few Ever Deliver

As we looked into What’s Love Got to Do With It?, I again referenced how our “employees’ willingness to exceed the call of duty” can “lead to a 57% improvement in discretionary effort” and “on average, a 20% improvement in individual productivity” per the Harvard Business Review. But if we want to h...

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Purpose is a Precursor to Contribution!

Earlier I shared Marcus Buckingham’s comment about love being the most powerful force in business for driving behavior - except he probably spells it behaviour… In that same talk, he said that “love is the precursor to contribution,” and related it to the engagement we can achieve from our employees...

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Connecting It All to Our Purpose

I remember laughing out loud at my new boss during the first 60 day review I had experienced as a new employee since I was a teenager. In early October of 2014, I started a position with a new company for the first time since March of 1996. During that initial performance evaluation just two months ...

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How Each Thing Ties to Your ONE Thing

With that last reference to Jeff Henderson’s book Know What You’re FOR in mind, I want you to consider one more idea that still resonates with me several years after reading it for the first time. Make no mistake though, it was packed full of amazing ideas; this one just connects here really well! J...

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Can We Really Drive Productivity Without Love?

I’ve often heard that you can prove anything with statistics - except facts… I realize that’s something usually said in jest but I’ve also seen the same statistics used to prove contradictory points, and I won’t even get started on how many times I’ve seen scriptures used the same way! When we think...

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It’s a LOVE Thing, but What’s Love Got to Do With It?

If we’re going to keep a clear purpose that truly drives us to lead effectively at the top of our minds on a daily basis, understanding how we’re wired certainly matters, but our best long term results will be from pursuing something we love! As I said before though, the idea of loving everything we...

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When Serving Others Feeds Our Purpose

If we’re in a leadership role and have this third primary behavioral style, where we’re more Reserved and People-Oriented, we’re part of the largest group across the population as a whole. That said, I haven’t personally seen nearly as many folks who are wired this way jump at opportunities to be fr...

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